8FFLFOE Godicke) just can’t seem to understand each other. Tough-minded Papa puts stock in working with his hands, while sensitive Simon lives a life of the mind. When Simon befriends bullied Jewish boy Isak (Karl Martin Eriksson), matters start looking up. Isak’s home is a wonderland to Simon: Here are books and music, warm affection and a father (Jan Josef Liefers) who encourages culture and conversation. Simon’s father takes to Isak, enlisting him to learn the craft of boat-making. The winds of war make their way through the story, the most palatable informing Simon’s knotted familytree, and the most bothersome coming as a sadomasochistic sexual kink derived from Nazi abuse. Mostly, “Simon and the Oaks” focuses on the boy being father to the man. Nicely acted, nicely filmed and nicely scored, “Simon and the Oaks” is foreign-film comfort food, rewarded for its trouble with a record 13 Swedish Academy Award nominations last year. See you next year, WWII Europe. Not rated. Two hours, two minutes.— P.C.
Continued from previous page
it thrice — “they” being Lana and Andy Wachowski and Tom Tykwer. “Cloud Atlas” actually refers to the cloudy overlap of humanity, the transmigration of souls. To illustrate the universality of human nature, the Wachowskis and Tykwer sextuplecast their film like a stage adaptation of a sprawling novel.We have Tom Hanks as a tattooed goatherd mumbling pidgin English in post-apocalyptic Hawaii (among five other roles); Halle Berry getting her Pam Grier on as a street-smart reporter (among five other roles); Jim Sturgess as a 22nd-century Korean Keanu Reeves (don’t ask — among six other roles), and so on: Halle Berry in whiteface! Hugo Weaving in drag! The wigs and makeup and accents and tics become a comical distraction to a movie that very badly wants to be taken seriously. But “Cloud Atlas” winds up just being very bad. Some will find all this deeply moving, hugely impressive, dazzling and/or mind-shattering. But I’ll wager that most audiences will find it like the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade of Pretension, with a giant slab of ham but no commercial breaks. The Wachowskis and Tykwer are determined to make you understand eternity, and in that and only that, they succeed: By the time you get to the film’s endless series of endings, you’ll feel as if you’ve lived lifetimes. Rated R for violence, language, sexuality/nudity and some drug use. Two hours, 52 minutes.— P.C.
TAKEN 2 -1/2
Gerald Butler and Jonny Weston in “Chasing Mavericks.” There is predictability to the plot, and Beca’s romantic story can feel strained. Still, the quirky characters and clever dialogue help absolve other cinematic sins. So far, “Pitch Perfect” takes the baton as the feel-good movie of the year. Rated PG-13 for sexual material, language and drug references. 1 hour, 52 minutes. — T.H.
FLIGHT ---
(Century 16, Century 20) Director Robert Zemeckis typically invokes cinematic technique ranging on spectacle, and “Flight” delivers on that promise in an extended and masterful aerial sequence, a crash scenario that characters will parse over the two hours to follow. “Flight” begins by establishing Washington’s Captain “Whip” Whitaker as lingeringly liquored up and therefore in need of a leveling cocaine bump before striding confidently to the cockpit. What follows is, in part, an exploration of what it means to be a hero in a real world of human frailty and grey areas. Whip is heading for a personal crash of his own, and if he’s to avoid it, he will need to embrace humility and accept help. But the inconvenient truth is that Whip is probably right when he insists, “Someone put me in a broken plane” and that “No one else could have landed that plane like I did.” “Flight” offers much that’s productively unsettling, anchored by Washington’s old-school movie-star performance, filigreed with some quietly excellent supporting work from the likes of Bruce Greenwood and Peter Gerety, and culminating in a “Scent of a Woman”style moral climax that offers a more relatable opportunity for modern heroism: the chance to take responsibility. Rated R for drug and alcohol abuse, language, sexuality/nudity and an intense action sequence. Two hours, 18 minutes.— P.C.
LOOPER ---1/2
(Century 16, Century 20) Of all the projects Joseph Gordon-Levitt has been involved with, “Looper” may well be the one to launch him into superstardom. The picture takes place in the year 2044, 30 years before the invention of time travel. The mob has a stranglehold on the advanced technology, using time travel to send people back to the year 2044 for termination by highly paid Loopers like Joe (Gordon-Levitt). Occasionally the mob will send back the older version of the Loopers themselves to “close the loop,” When Joe’s older self (Bruce Willis) appears in the year 2044 and young Joe can’t pull the trigger, older Joe escapes. The episode sets
24
THE SESSIONS ---
Rebel Wilson and Anna Camp in “Pitch Perfect.” off a hunt-and-chase that ropes in brassy farmer Sara (Emily Blunt) and her young son Cid (Pierce Gagnon). Director Rian Johnson (“Brick”) demonstrates a deft touch and infuses “Looper” with subtleties and soulful moments. Gordon-Levitt nails Willis’ mannerisms, so it’s easy to believe the two are versions of the same person, and showcases his depth with toughness and compassion. Blunt is also remarkably good as a protective mother, and youngster Gagnon is a revelation. The visual effects underwhelm at times, but the story doesn’t suffer. Ultimately, “Looper” is a thoughtful genre-bender that brings science-fiction, action and mystery together in one tight package. Rated R for strong violence, drug content, sexuality/nudity and language. 1 hour, 59 minutes. — T.H.
THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER ---
(Century 16) In “Wallflower,” novelist Stephen Chbosky directs a revealing film based on his own semi-autobiographical book. Witness specimen Charlie (Logan Lerman) — seen here entering the mating grounds of Mill Grove High School outside Pittsburgh in the early ‘90s — little understanding the pull that will lead him to join a pack, gravitate to his cool English teacher, fall for an unavailable female of the species, make mix tapes, have late-night “deep thought” epiphanies, and participate in ancient teenage rituals involving drugs,
■ Mountain View Voice ■ MountainViewOnline.com ■ November 9, 2012
alcohol and/or “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” Charlie is painfully shy and inclined to lick the wounds of earlier tangles with predators. He is accepted by the impulsive seniors of the pack: attractive potential mate Sam (Emma Watson) and gay Patrick (Ezra Miller), the latter performing that rare and complex dance of flamboyance, deception, confusion, fear and desire like a junior Oscar Wilde. One cannot blame our sentimental filmmaker or even you, gentle viewer, for seeing in these younglings something of ourselves. Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material, drug and alcohol use, sexual content and a fight; all involving teens. One hour, 43 minutes. — P.C.
PITCH PERFECT ---
(Century 20) “Pitch Perfect” is a big-screen boon for the “Glee” crowd, and fans of last year’s breakthrough hit “Bridesmaids” will appreciate a similar feminine energy in “Pitch.” Barden University’s all-female a cappella group the Bellas blew its shot at winning the state championship when singer Aubrey (Anna Camp) lost her lunch on stage. Enter Beca (Anna Kendrick), an independent freshman who has more experience creating musical mash-ups on her laptop than singing a cappella. Big props to director Jason Moore for maintaining an upbeat atmosphere and getting the most from his talented cast. Kendrick is especially good, demonstrating both comedic and dramatic skills, and Rebel Wilson virtually steals the show with her hilarious portrayal.
(Palo Alto Square) This independent comedy-drama gets it right, in the essence of its true story as well as the social discomforts surrounding disability and sane discussion of sexuality. U.C. Berkeley grad O’Brien (John Hawkes) begins the film as a 38-year-old virgin. This is a recipe for gentle comedy edged with melancholy, but the hero of “The Sessions” spends most of his waking hours at home in an iron lung. His declarations of love have thus far been unreciprocated, which leads him to sex surrogate Cheryl Cohen Greene (Helen Hunt). She coaches her client through “body awareness exercises” and sexual acts with her. All the while, Mark confides in local Catholic priest Father Brendan (William H. Macy), from whom Mark hopes he will get humane extra-papal permission for his sexual odyssey. “The Sessions” finds firm ground in its exquisitely naturalistic sex scenes that provide a twist on the usual patient-therapist relationship while also exploring male-female friendship and a kind of spiritual love that, while easily confused with romance, transcends it. Hawkes crawls into O’Brien’s skin, changing the timbre of his voice and painfully contorting his body but more importantly feeling each emotional ache. It’s the story of a man, one who feels he doesn’t deserve love and will never get it, but discovers he’s wrong. You don’t need an iron lung to make that story inspirational ... but it helps. Rated R for strong sexuality including graphic nudity and frank dialogue. One hour, 35 minutes.— P.C.
SIMON AND THE OAKS --1/2
(Aquarius) Every year, as surely as the changing of the leaves, we get a tasteful European import about a child coming of age during World War II. This year that movie is “Simon and the Oaks.” This time around, it’s Simon (Jonatan S. Wachter) in 1939 Sweden. He and his father (Stefan
(Century 16, Century 20) Enraged that a foreigner would blithely kill his son and think he could get away with it, Albanian villain Murad Hoxha (Rade Serbedzija) relentlessly pursues his own justice against retired CIA operative Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) in “Taken 2.” Since Mills offers a last-minute invite to his ex (Famke Janssen) and their daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) to join him on a business trip to Istanbul, Hoxha gets a shot at teaching the American that turnabout is fair play. As a writer-producer, Besson is particularly mercenary. Knowing well his audience for these blood-simple actioners, he ticks off a rooftop chase, car chase, a handful of mano-a-mano clashes and multiple crashes and explosions. But the ludicrous plot devices that allow Mills to go from point A to point Z insult the intelligence of the character and the audience. Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, and some sensuality. One hour, 31 minutes. — P.C.
WRECK-IT RALPH ---
(Century 16, Century 20) It’s not easy being 9 feet tall and 643 pounds. And that’s not even the hardest part about being “WreckIt Ralph,” the leading character of Walt Disney Animation’s 52nd feature. The hardest part is being an arcade-game “bad guy,” a professional wrecker tasked with endlessly destroying “Niceland” while heroic Fix-It Felix Jr. saves the day. Ralph (John C. Reilly) has begun to want more out of life. He attends a “Bad-Anon” meeting with the likes of Clyde the Ghost from “Pac-Man” and Bowser from “Super Mario Bros.,” but no one tells him what he wants to hear: that he could be a hero, that he could dare to be liked. And so Ralph goes off the reservation, doing the unthinkable by leaving his game. Circumstances eventually deposit Ralph into a third arcade game for the lion’s share of the picture. This is “Sugar Rush,” an animeinflected candy-land kart-racing game, and it’s home to the annoyingly adorable. Vanellope von Schweetz (Sarah Silverman). Branded a “glitch” in her game, Vanellope is on her own quest for validation and thus forms an uneasy alliance with Ralph to get her across the game’s finish line and allow Ralph passage home. The fantasy’s grounding in real-world concerns speaks to all ages, and the story’s creative path to self-actualization with its zeitgeisty antibullying theme and conclusion “There’s no one I’d rather be than me” speak eloquently to kids. Mostly, though, “Wreck-It Ralph” is built for fun.Save up your quarters, kids: it’s worth it! Rated PG for thematic elements and some perilous action. One hour, 53 minutes.— P.C.